AP officer linked to fake mineral trade arrested

January 27, 2016 10:24 am

By JOSEPH MURAYA, NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 27- A police officer who allegedly led a syndicate of mineral traders was on Wednesday morning taken to court after detectives received numerous complaints from victims who have lost millions of shillings.

According to detectives, the officer had fake documents showing him as a certified mineral trader, which he used to woo unsuspecting customers mostly of Asian origin.

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The officer is said to have received Sh100 million in one case but he did not deliver the agreed minerals while in another case, a doctor lost Sh6 million to the officer.

“The doctor wanted to buy steel materials that allegedly had mercury inside them. Even after payments, he did not receive anything,” the detective said.

“The officer will create something every time his clients asked for the goods to derail them. This continued until one of the victims based in Nairobi on Sunday reported him to police.”

Documents seen by Capital FM News indicate that the officer also alleges that underneath his house there is a steel box with various minerals.

The officer mostly targeted traders in Mombasa County.

Police want the Administration Officer based in Kisumu East retained in custody for 7 days as they carry on with the probe.

The syndicate, according to police has operated since February last year.